No.2 started out good...But then####

[bsv]

Hi every-one, I've been working on bow #2.I"ve been taking it really slowwww,bent on making target weight this time,maple backed red oak,glued in some reflex.
 
  every thing was going perfect,tillering nicely.target weight of 50#'s.Got her to 54# @ 27 exercising the limbsto 20 pulls and Bang...Well I got that out of the way      
 
  worst part is I dont know why  :confused:But I'm over it and on to #3 It will be maple backed cherry because I have it and don't have to buy anything.I would like 50-55 @ 28 any advice on dims?I like a little longer bow.Any advice would be appreciated.  :bigsmyl:Burt

[takefive]

Ouch!  I've had a maple backed elm split on the tillering tree at about 24" draw while I was doing the final tillering.  The backer split about 6" from the top limb tip all the way down into the elm handle.  Still don't know why; the grain was very straight.
I've only made one cherry bow.  I backed it with hickory and it fretted in more than one spot on both limbs.  Maybe the hickory backer just over powered it.  Then again, it could have been my tillering.  Either way, I've come to like maple as a belly wood and I stay away from cherry boards.
Hope you have better luck.

[joe nichols]

From the picture, I would guess the glue joint gave way then the belly then the back.  Just a hunch.  I've broke a couple and one broke that looked kind of like that, with the belly and back separating.  The back looks like it pulled apart and the belly like it was just pulled too hard.

[mwosborn]

That's too bad, but it happens and we can learn a lot from the failures.  What were the dimensions of the bow?  Front profile?

[mikkekeswick]

Cherry is poor in compression. I would heavily trap the back.

[joe nichols]

From the picture, I would guess the glue joint gave way then the belly then the back.  Just a hunch.  I've broke a couple and one broke that looked kind of like that, with the belly and back separating.  The back looks like it pulled apart and the belly like it was just pulled too hard.

[Roy from Pa]

One thing I see is the edges of the limbs are square. That is a starting place for limb failure. Round over all the edges of the limbs, every time you remove wood, make sure the edges are rounded over again. If you had a hinge in that outer 1/3 area of that limb, that could have caused the break also.

[bsv]

Thanks all,I will remember all your coments on my next build.Burt